Modeled on the work of the National Writing Project, this chapter details a year-long professional development (PD) focused on writing which was conducted with an elementary faculty (grades kindergarten through 5th) in an urban setting in the United States. The PD resulted in several strategies that were identified that served as a means to foster writing capacity. Strategies included 1) embedded writing practice in content discipline areas; 2) the dedicated time the PD provided for teachers to think, discuss, and share writing practice and products; 3) the efficacy of displaying student work, especially in hallway walls, classrooms, and common areas; 4) anchor papers; and 5) use of children's literature as mentor texts for writing. Three areas were identified that exemplified practical applications: structured collaboration, participants developing skills related to teaching the writing process, and developing school-level practices. Through this implementation study, writing pedagogical practices emerged as equity pedagogy.
TopIntroduction
Developing the craft of writing as embedded classroom pedagogy requires on-going practice, expert demonstrations, guidance, feedback, and encouragement. Writing as embedded pedagogical practice enjoys a rich tradition that stretches back to the mid-1980s (Atwell, 1998; Calkins, 1991; 1994; Graves, 1983; 1995; 2004; Murray, 2001; Hillocks, 1986; Institute of Education Sciences, 2016; Ray, 2001; 2004). Graves, one of the most recognized writing process scholars, posited, “if students had one good teacher of writing in their entire career … they could be successful writers” (1995, p.14). As a field, literacy educators understand and support rich writing instruction and resultant student outcomes but a disconnect often exists between what writing researchers promote, how preservice teachers are taught to teach writing, and what in-service teachers foster in terms of classroom practice.
The quality of writing instruction impacts classroom interactions around writing and teachers’ writing capacity influences the kinds of writing that teachers facilitate and students produce. Teaching writing is fraught with challenges. For example, currently (2022) writing is not prioritized in either public school classrooms or teacher preparation programs in the United States (US); most in-service teachers receive little or no instructional support from their districts and systems on recommended practices on teaching writing. Moreover, a narrow focus on test prompts correspondingly narrows how writing is taught (Graham, 2019; Langeberg, 2019; Myers & Paulick, 2020). Additionally, teachers are sometimes hesitant to teach writing due to a lack of confidence, and many teachers subsequently experience trepidation about teaching writing (Brenner & McQuirk, 2019; Helfrich & Clark, 2016; McCarthey & James, 2020). Typically, writing is occurring less frequently in many elementary classrooms because reading instruction is prioritized over writing (Graham, 2019; Korth, et al., 2016; McCarthey & James, 2020; Protheroe, 2012).
Research about recommended writing practice focused on the elementary level (Calkins, 1991; 1994; Institute of Education Sciences, 2016) suggests a corpus of pedagogical practices for encouraging successful student writing outcomes. The rationale behind imbedded classroom writing is threefold: writing is a significant life-long communication skill; writing is a tool for learning, and writing fosters critical thinking (Graham & Harris, 2019; Nagin, 2003; Protheroe, 2012). Clearly, researchers advocate that elementary-aged students benefit from opportunities to write and should be encouraged to write from an early age (Calkins, 2020; Graham & Harris, 2019; McGill-Franzen & Ward, 2020). And, increasing time spent writing correspondingly increases students’ writing skills (Cabell & Copp, 2021; Graham, et al., 2016; Quinn, 2021).
Given the increasingly myopic focus on reading instruction, the over focus on standardized test results, and the politicization of literacy instruction, traditional teacher preparation programs do not develop writing capacity (Graham, 2019; Langeberg, 2019; Myers & Paulick, 2020). While pre-service teachers at the elementary level may be introduced to writing through coursework, teachers truly develop capacity when they teach groups of children how to write and come to view themselves as writers, a tenet of the National Writing Project (NWP) (2020). However, because of the disconnect between research and practice, when writing instruction does occur, especially in early elementary classrooms, it is commonly centered on the conventions or mechanics of writing and seldom on the writing process and/or composition (Hebard, 2016).
This chapter describes a year-long writing professional development (PD) with a whole (grades K-5) elementary magnet school faculty, conducted in a large, Southern urban district in the US. The PD was crafted to explore the kinds of writing practices that existed, build upon and expand teacher knowledge about writing, and increase capacity to teach writing. The PD served as an implementation study, designed to accomplish three goals:
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increase the efficacy of teachers’ pedagogical practices in writing in an effort to operationalize a school-wide writing process approach,
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encourage writing across the disciplines, and
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increase writing as a means to address equity in terms of providing students with rich writing experiences.